Gift in your Will

Why leave a gift in your Will

By leaving a gift in your Will to Berry Street, you can leave a lasting legacy that positively impacts lives. Berry Street’s commitment to reimagine the service system means your bequest will help ensure that children, young people and families are safe, thriving and hopeful.

Why we need your support

In Australia, 1 in every 32 children needs child protection services*. That’s 1 in every classroom.

The number of children in out-of-home care in Victoria continues to increase. In fact, concerning reports show that Victoria is on track to have almost 25,000 children in care by 2026. This is more than any other state and territory and could increase even more due to the ongoing impacts of COVID-19.

The child protection system needs a complete overhaul.

Investing $193 million every year over 10 years in the face of severe impacts from COVID-19 will see**:

• 1,460 children prevented from entering out-of-home care or residential care every year
• 9,150 children access targeted early intervention programs, supporting them to stay safely with their families
• Victoria save $1.99 billion over 10 years.

For over 140 years, Berry Street has adapted to a changing world, and we will continue to adapt to achieve our vision and purpose. Our key focus today is ensuring that the child and family system points towards early intervention and prevention.

We can’t do this alone. We need your support so that we can reimagine service systems and shape a new future. This includes a future where children, young people and families are safe, thriving and hopeful.

*Source: Child protection Australia 2019-20, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
**Source: Keeping Families Together Through COVID-19, 2020, Social Ventures Australia.

What impact your gift will have

A gift, no matter how great or small, will make a lasting difference to children, young people and families in need.

By leaving a gift to Berry Street in your Will, you will be helping us to intervene early in the life of a child or a family.

Your gift will allow us to continue to innovate our programs and reorientate the child and family services system towards early intervention. Shifting these systems will allow families to stay safely together and address challenges before they spiral out of control.

You will be providing Berry Street with certainty that we can keep delivering innovative early intervention programs to prevent harm occurring to children, young people and families. Together we can reimagine the future.

Join others in leaving a lasting legacy

Leaving a gift in your Will to Berry Street makes you part of a very special community, who are committed to reimagining the child and family services system.

The system is broken and our vision is to reimagine and reorientate it towards early intervention and prevention.

Your gift will ensure that Berry Street can invest and innovate in early intervention. This will help keep families safe and together. It will help us to support children and young people to reach their full potential.

Plan your Will

Discuss with your family and loved ones your decision to include Berry Street in your Will. You can leave a gift to Berry Street and still provide for others close to you.

Always speak to your solicitor or Trustee Company before making or revising your Will. To find a local Will and probate solicitor or Trustee Company, contact the Law Society or Law Institute in your state or territory.

What kinds of gifts can I include in my Will?

There are many kinds of bequests you can make, including:

• a percentage or share of your estate (residual bequest)
• a specific sum of money (pecuniary bequest)
• property
• shares
• the whole of your estate.

Your solicitor can help you choose the gift that’s right for you.

Can I leave a gift in memory of someone?

Yes. This is a wonderful way to honour your loved one.

A memorial gift is different to a bequest, as it doesn’t come from your estate.

Wording your Will

While any gift is greatly appreciated, the most beneficial to Berry Street is a “residuary bequest gift”. This allows you to take care of your loved ones and leave a percentage of the remainder of your Estate to charity.

We've provided preferred wording for including a gift to Berry Street in your Will. You can share this with your solicitor so they can use it as a reference:

‘I (insert full name) give to Berry Street, of Botanicca Building 9, Level 3, 588 Swan Street Richmond in the State of Victoria, for its general purposes, (indicate percentage) share/residue/special gift of my estate or the sum of $(indicate dollar value) and I declare that the receipt of acknowledgement of its Chief Executive Officer or other authorised officer will be sufficient to discharge the responsibility of my Executors of Trustees in respect of this bequest.’

For solicitors and executors

If you're drafting a Will for your client who wishes to leave a gift to Berry Street, please include the information in the 'Wording your Will' section.

If you're administering an estate that includes a gift to Berry Street, we would appreciate you letting us know as soon as possible. Please call Diana Doyle on 0428 354 988 or email ddoyle@berrystreet.org.au.

Notifying Berry Street

If you're intending to leave a gift in your Will to Berry Street, we would appreciate it if you could let us know by contacting Diana Doyle on 0428 354 988 or email ddoyle@berrystreet.org.au. We're immensely grateful for every gift we receive and we love to thank those who have made the generous decision to include Berry Street in their Will.

If you've already included us in your Will, please let us know. We would love to hear from you and say thank you. Please rest assured that your details will be held in the strictest of confidence.

Contact us

For more information about leaving a gift in your Will, please contact Diana Doyle on 0428 354 988 or email ddoyle@berrystreet.org.au for a confidential discussion.